After Czech Republic it was time to travel across Germany.

Germany is a beautiful country but after visiting Český Krumlov, the beautiful old city in the Czech Republic, I wanted to make progress westwards. Ultimately I wanted to be in Northern France for a certain event that happens there every year, but I will give you details of that later. There are so many beautiful cities in Germany but I had to do the hard kilometres in one day to make it back to Neunkirchen in Saarland. And hard kilometres they were. Germany is like one big road works site when you are trying to traverse it on the autobahn. The autobahn itself can be an experience. When I crossed the border into the Bundesrepublik Deutschland it was a little confusing. As you approach the border of course you are hitting ever decreasing speed limits until eventually its down to 30 km/h as you are at the point of crossing. A friendly police officer waved me through and it seems I held no interest for the customs officers either. I was in the Bundesrepublik and keeping a watchful eye on the GPS. It normally let me know what the speed limit was on the road I was travelling. Now it had disappeared and I was at a bit of loss. A truck began overtaking me while I tried to figure out if I was still at 30 km/h for the border crossing, before the penny finally dropped. A lot of the autobahns have no speed limit. I had experienced this many times before and have no idea why it took so long for me to figure it out but of course it’s something every driver wants to experience at least once. Unlimited use of the throttle. I have on occasion, made total use of this and exercised the throttle wrist fully. The novelty wears off quickly though and you have to settle into the rhythm to make the most of the highway system. Boring, but at least it gets you where you want to go efficiently. Or so I thought. Not this time. Every time I thought I was beginning to make good progress the traffic slowed. Inevitably it was more roadworks and in some cases it caused the traffic to bottleneck for up to half an hour. it seemed even worse on the east bound side of the autobahn where the traffic was regularly at a complete standstill. Kilometre after kilometre of trucks at a standstill or at best at a crawl. The temperature was well into the thirties (celsius) and I hoped for their sakes the truck drivers had air-conditioning because even I was sweltering when the traffic slowed on my Suzuki V-Strom Adventure 1000cc. It was a long day even though I and the hundreds of other bikers travelling, had the added benefit of being able to filter between lanes in heavy traffic. Eventually though I made it to my little cottage in the woods near Neunkirchen and after a shower I headed to my favourite bar and restaurant called “Zum Landesknecht”, about five minutes walk away. A fine feast and a few beers later to was time to call it a night.

The next day I did a little exploring in the nearby small cities of Homburg and Saarlouis, both of which are well worth a visit. Both are historic cities and marked nowadays by the beautiful little “platz” or squares and streets with shaded café and restaurant seating where you can get a coffee or food while relaxing in the ambience of these little German cities. A feature of both cities is the large number of third level or university students and Saarlouis in particular has a very lively atmosphere with lots of students gathering in the late evening and early night to socialise, mostly outside the cafés and bars and it gives the place a real buzz. It has changed hands so many times because of war, as it borders Germany and France and this of course increases the degree to which this little city has a cosmopolitan feel to it. The city was originally a hexagonal fortress, built by Louis XIV to defend his empire. Another very interesting aspect of Saarlouis is the old stables and shelters built from red brick in a line, which are now being used as quaint little restaurants and bars. One of it’s famous sons, Marshall Michel Ney fought with Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo. He was executed after Napoleon’s defeat even though he had a chance to save himself but he refused to renounce France in favour of Prussia. He requested and was given the right to command his own firing squad to fire with the following command: “Soldiers, when I give the command to fire, fire straight at my heart. Wait for the order. It will be my last to you. I protest against my condemnation. I have fought a hundred battles for France, and not one against her … Soldiers, fire!” Too much history, I know, but I am just trying to give you a feel for the place.

The next day I was up bright and early and it was time to head north towards Luxembourg on the V-Strom. I topped up the Scott oiler and gave the bike a good check over and set out northwards. Thanks to my friends in Neunkirchen IPA, particularly Thomas and Jürgen, both avid bikers of course. It’s always a pleasure to meet and renew our friendships. I will visit you there again in the future, I have no doubt.

The city of Český Krumlov in the Czech Republic is a great treat and definitely worth a visit.

Cesky Krumlov is a fairy tale in the Czech Republic.

Suzie, my Suzuki V-Strom Adventure 1000cc and I, had crossed from Ireland to Continental Europe in mid May and headed South through the Black Forest and the Alps, East to Slovenia and Austria, and after a quick dip into Hungary, ended up in the beautiful city of Gmunden in the North of Austria. Now it was time to move on to the Czech Republic. To the city of Český Krumlov. Český Krumlov is a small bohemian city in the South of the country set in beautiful surrounding countryside, on the Vltava river. As you take the little winding tree lined road north towards Český Krumlov, you see the river that flows towards the city on your left. Along the banks are rafting and canoeing centres where you can take a ride and enjoy the beautiful views from the river. There are many of these centres as well as camping facilities in the beautiful countryside that is South Bohemia. Cesky Krumlov is most famous for it’s massive castle but is ranked alongside Prague in terms of being a UNESCO world heritage site for it’s old city sector. It is amazing. On the day I arrived there was a music festival on I believe, and there was classical music in the streets, which was a treat. As well as the spectacular little squares and medieval buildings, the city has a vibrant air about it and unfortunately it has really been discovered by international tourism. When we visited last, almost twenty years ago, it had been by train from Prague. We had enquired there about some interesting places to visit in the Czech Republic and someone had suggested Český Krumlov. I had been on a break from work in Bosnia at the time and was relying on public transport.

We took a train from Prague to České Budějovice and then a narrow gauge train travelling at about 25mph brought us to Krumlov. The return journey cost us the equivalent of two Irish pounds and we practically had the place to ourselves. We were delighted because even back then it was hard to get elbow room in Prague, on Charles Bridge for instance. That is no longer true in Český Krumlov. Now it is packed to the rafters with people wielding selfie sticks and queues in the restaurants are almost a definite. Back then the local food and beer was so cheap and yet of such great quality. I was amazed at the number of people that still chose to shell out three or four pounds for an internationally famous Dutch beer when the Czech beer was gorgeous and a large bottle of the tasty brew was about 50 pence or cents.

The castle is so massive it’s almost impossible to take an image of it that gives you the sense of it’s size. All of what you see above is part of it. Here is another view that might help to give you an idea of just how big it really is.

In the first photo the section above is just the left hand portion of what you see. You can walk right up into the castle and through the maze of passageways and squares that made this a formidable fortress as well as a Palace in the days before it became a museum.

Enjoy the beautiful town squares and I hope when you visit there are as many bands and musicians for you to listen to. Expect the food to be excellent here in the Czech Republic and local beer is very good even though it is difficult to find a bar in the traditional sense. I found a restaurant called Papa’s and I was lucky to get what appeared to be the last remaining table on the veranda over-looking the river. The food and wine were fantastic. The dish I had was turkey wrapped in pastry and sitting on a bed of spinach. I highly recommend you give Papa’s a go if you’re ever looking for some place to eat in Český Krumlov. I found a little bar later that served local beer and it was as good as I remembered it to be from the previous visit.

This area is extremely popular with motorcyclists and they were everywhere. I saw a most unusual BMW bike parked near a pension / hotel and I wondered what the motivation for the livery was. The reason for the popularity with motorcyclists is the challenging roads and the beautiful views as well as good food and beer. I stayed in a great little pension / hotel called The Vlatavin and the couple that own it definitely went above and beyond to make Suzie and I feel secure there. Suzie had her own covered mesh compound for the night and the accommodation was first class for me too.

So, having enjoyed Český Krumlov, it’s time for a good sleep because tomorrow is going to be a long day. I intend to cross Germany in one day and it’s a wide country. The weather is holding well with good temperatures so it should be a nice spin.

A quick dip into Hungary and then on to the beautiful Austrian city of Gmunden by the lake.

I left the beautiful Austrian Region of Burgenland heading towards a small city in Hungary called Sopron on my Suzuki V-Strom 1000. My “sat nav” hadn’t heard of Slovenia but surely Hungary is part of Europe. It seemed pretty hopeful when I could find Sopron in the system and I set off East through a couple of small Austrian villages. After about 10 kilomtres it took me down a narrow track and suddenly just stopped navigating and said: now go off road. Thanks Garmin. It had to be a border crossing though because there was a young Austrian soldier standing there looking bemused at me turning up. He obviously doesn’t do much business there. I pointed up the track that was in front of me and said “Hungary”. He hestitated a moment and tentatively nodded yes. I throttled into what looked like a narrow farm lane with trees overhanging on both sides and soon found myself negiotiating deep pools of water and sections of hard rutted mud and stone. I don’t think a car could get through here. To say I was less than certain how this was going to turn out is true and things got worse about a half kilometre later when the track split in two. No signpost or mark to indicate which way. I chose right and wasn’t sure if I was going back towards Austria or towards Sopron. About another kilometre further and the trees opened up and I found myself on a wide gravel road.

It must have once been a proper road because there were sections along the left side where there were signs of old cobblestones. If you look closely at the top right side of the photo you can see the cobblestones. Another kilometre and I found myself at a main road. Still no signpost but turning right worked the last time, so why not. Yes, a few minutes later I was in Sopron.

Sopron was a Roman city and the ruins can be seen in places. The Hungarians strenghtened the city walls and defences and held it until the Turks took it over by force and it was destroyed by fire in 1676. Anyway enough with the history lesson. The point is that the influence of Roman, Hungarian, German, Austrian and Italians has made it an interesting city to visit. After having something to eat in a big square I decided to keep going and I travelled back through Austria, on the main road this time, and headed North, to an elegant city called Gmunden, on the banks of a beautiful lake called Traunsee.

The scenery and the lake make this a favourite for Austrians. It gets a lot of tourists from outside Austria too.

It’s castle on the lake, schloss Ort is probably it best know landmark. But it has lots of historic buildings and lake side promenades. So that will bring my visit to Austria to a close. Next stop will be Czech Republic.

When people think of Austria, skiing and wintersports are probably what comes to mind first. The West side of Austria is really beautiful and cities such as Salzburg and Innsbruck are really great to visit but for me my favourite part is Burgenland along the East side of the country, bordering Slovenia, Hungary and Slovakia. It gets about 300 sunny days a year and has castles, lakes, palaces and most importantly parties!

The reasons for this trip are: rambling by motorcycle around Europe; and, visiting my friend Steaffi that I have know for twenty years, when we were Peacekeeping in Bosnia in the 90s. He has a big “roundy” birthday and he invited me to the party. So I am staying in Austria for five or six days. I have been here at least a dozen times before and love his family and extended family and friends. I know all the good restaurants and wine houses by now too.

Aunty’s place and Heidi’s wine house for example. Heidi makes great wines and really that is true for all Burgenland wines because they are very interested in the quality of their produce. It’s probably helps a lot when you have sunshine 300 days a year.

Another remarkable thing about the friendly people of Burgenland is their ability to party. For example, have you ever heard of a celebration called Fruhschoppen? Neither had I. What does it mean? My friends weren’t sure either. Something like early drink celebration.

I know exactly what it means. A reason to start partying early! That’s the “fruh” part. As for the rest? Who cares. It just means that instead of starting at the normal time for partying, you start before lunch. You eat beautiful food that’s cooked right there by the locals and served by young people who are wearing traditional Austrian costume, Lederhosen and Dirndl.
There is no charge to attend but you can donate money which is collected for local youth activites. Another great aspect of these big parties, that the whole village or town, young and old usually attend, is the music.

Every town has a band that plays traditional music. The sound is somewhere between brass band and orchestra, according to my limited knowledge of these matters.

In some countries it would be frowned upon if you stood on the furniture.

In Austria it is almost obligatory to stand on the table and clap and sing along to show your appreciation.

You have to be a little careful too in Austria because sometimes one party sort of runs into the next, or should I say the next day.

On the day of Steaffi’s birthday party we went to a celebration party hosted by the local motorcycle club, the Flying Foxes,

which had an emphasis on activities for the local children. The cluhouse and garden was jammed and yet again the guys were cooking and barbequeing right there in the yard and families enjoyed the festivities with great food and local wine. The club had gone to the trouble of making a little track in the garden so the children could try out mini quads which they loved.

We couldn’t stay long though because we had to get ready for Steaffi’s party. It was held in the Music Band Hall. It’s not the first party I went to there and as usual the food and the company was extraordinary. As well as the traditional main courses there were approximately a million cakes and sweet dishes. Everyone brought something. It was a fantastic party. The highlight for me was a music video that everyone of his family, children, parents and grandparents took part in, dancing to a very happy song indeed.

A meal in the Grenadier restaurant in Forchtenstein Castle, the night before my departure,

with friends rounded off my visit. It’s a favourite for bikers too because of the interesting winding road up to the castle.

Something tells me it wont be long before I visit again. In the meantime Steaffi and some friends are visiting my home two days after I get back. So where to next…

After Stelvio I stopped in a beautiful town in South Tyrol, Italy called Silandro, or Shlanders if you prefer the Austrian version. First night in Italy so it had to be fantastic Italian food and wine and a stay in a lovely hotel. Next morning I tracked East through the Italian Alps. Remarkable little towns that seemed to be barely perched on the steep mountainside.

Then after two days in the Italian Alps I decided to visit Lake Bled in Slovenia, and to get there the best option seemed to be the autobahn through the 7.5 kilometre Karawanken tunnel that links Austria to Slovenia. So Suzi Suzuki had the first run on a motorway all the way from Northern France.

When I visited the castle I made sure she had some shade from the hot sun as well as the company of some other motorbikes.

Now it’s time to return to Austria, to Burgenland South East of Vienna, to spend a few days with a great friend who has a “roundy” birthday to celebrate. Steaffi and I were peacekeepers together in Bosnia twenty years ago and have been close ever since and I’m looking forward to meeting his fantastic extended family again. I think there is a possibility that we might drink one or two white wine spritzers too.

Suzi was happy in a cosy Contance, or Konstanz, hotel basement while I explored the beautiful city that is Constance.

Today it was onwards and upwards, literally. Switzerland is two kilometres from the city and I pointed her towards the Swiss Alps, without (wash out your mouth) touching an Autobahn (motorway).

But when you’re passing a little country like Lichenstein, it would be bad manners not to stop

and say hello. And Vaduz the capital is well worth a look. It doesn’t take long because it’s tiny.

Now for some of these fabulous Swiss roads, beautiful villages and mountain passes. Always heading South. The roads are fantastic, the views are spectacular and the hairpin filled roads to the mountain passes are just amazing. Reminds one of that mountain pass in Italy 🇮🇹. Wonder is it open…